Shaker



Dec. 5, 1933. R. v. BLOCKER SHAKER Filed Feb. 8, 1932 INVEN TOR. P01770220 M B/ocker ATTORNEYS.

Patented Dec. 5, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE .My invention relates to shakers. It has to do, more particularly, with a shaker which is adapts ed to be used for shaking the grates of alocomotive, although it is not, necessarily, limited It thereto.

f the socket member.

.In the prior art, it has been the practice to make shakers of the type indicated in one piece. That is, the handle of the shaker and the socket portion which is adapted to fit over the stub of the grate are formed integrally with each other. These shakers are usually made from comparatively long bars of wrought iron or steel. The lower end of each of these bars of wrought iron or steel is provided with ears projecting from the opposite edges of the bar. These ears are bent upwardly until they are perpendicular to the face of the bar. Then, a piece of wrought iron or steel is welded to the top edges of these ears in order to join the two ears together to form' Shakers made in the manner set out above are possessed of many undesirable features. In the first place, when the socket portion which fits over the stub wears to suchan'extent that it cannot be used any more, it is necessary to throw away the entire shaker and replace it with a new one. Furthermore, the socket portion tends to spread and causes the piece of metaljoining the two ears of the socket'topull loose from the cars. This causes the shaker to become very loose on the stub and to slip oh? the stub, sometimes causing injury to the fireman using the shaker. Furthermore, when the shaker is made of wrought iron or steel, the lower end of the socket becomes battered by continual contact with the deck of the locomotive. This continual battering causes the metal to spread which, in turn, either causes the socket to fit improperly on the stub, or not to fit on it at all.

One of the objects of my invention is to provide a shaker of the type indicated having the handle and the socket member, which is adapted to fit over the stub of the grate, made separately but which are suitably connected together.

Another object of my invention is to provide a shaker of the type indicated in which the socket member, which is connected to the handle, is made in such a manner that it will be extremely strong, and resistant to wear.

, Another object of my invention is to provide a shaker of the type indicated having the sock.- et member made in such a manner that the lowermost end of the so ket iormed therein .will

be disposed upwardly within the socket member itself so that the lower endof the socket itself will .not be subjected to the forces to which the lower end of the socket member as a whole is subjected, thereby ensuring proper fitting of the socket on the stub of the grate In its preferred form, my invention contemplates theprovision of a shaker of the type in: dicated wherein the socket member is cast in one piece in such a manner that it will be very strong and very resistant towear. This socket member is adapted to be riveted or otherwise secured toa handle portion which may be made of any suitable metal such as wrought iron or steel. The socket member is reinforced at its lower end and its lower edge is so formed'that the lower'end of the socket itself will be dis-. posed upwardly within the socket memberas a whole. Thus, the lower end of the socket itself will be fully protected from the battering and other forces to which the lower end of the socket member as a whole is subjected.

Various other .objects and advantages will ap: pear as this description progresses. The preferred embodiment of my invention is shown in the accompanying drawing wherein similar characters of reference designate corresponding parts and wherein:

"Figure 1 is a view showing my invention being used for shaking the grates of a locomotive.

Figure 2 is a perspective view, partly broken away,- of the socket member of myshaker, showing how it is adapted to be secured to the lower end of the shaker handle.

Figure 3 is a plan view .of the structure shown in Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a front elevation of the socket memberof my shaker which is shown as bein secured to the lower end of the shaker handle.

Figure 5 is a side elevation of .the structure shown in Figure 4.

Figure 6 is a perspective view, partly broken away, showing a modified form of my invention.

Figure 7 is a perspective view showing another modified form of my invention.

With reference to. the drawing, I have shown my shaker 1 mounted on a stub 2, which is adapted tobe' reciprocated in order to shake the grates 3 and 4 of the locomotive fire-box. These grates are connected to the stub by means of links 5 and 6. It. will be understood that. in some instances, the stub is formed on each grate and my shaker may be fitted on either ofthcse stubs when desired.

The shaker 1 comprises a handle portion 7 which may be made of any suitable metal such as wrought iron or steel. The socket member 8 which is adapted to fit over the stub 2 is mounted on the lower end of the handle 7, in a manner to be hereinafter fully described.

The socket portion 8 is cast from any suitable metal. As shown in Figures 2 to 5, inclusive, the socket member 8 comprises a body portion 9, havingthe projecting fianges 10 formed on the rear side thereof. These flanges extend substantially the entire length of the body portion 9 and are preferably inclined at their lower ends as at 11. adapted to fit between the flanges 10 and is secured in such position by means of rivets 12 which pass through countersunk openings 13, formed in the body portion 9, and through openings 14 formed in the lower end of the handle portion 7. Thus, it will be seen that, when the socket member 8 wears out, it may be easily removed by simply removing the rivets 12.

, Adjacent the lower end of the body portion 9, and on the front side thereof, the forwardly projecting walls 15 are formed; The upper ends of these walls are curved upwardly and rearwardly fromtheir outer edge to a point where they meet the front of the body portion 9. The space between the outer edges of the walls 15 is bridged by a front wall 16. Thus, it will be seen that a socket 17 is formed adjacent the lower end of the body portion 9. It will be noted from Figures 4 and 5 that all the walls of this socket taper inwardly and upwardly so that the socket islarger in cross-section at the bottom than it is at the top. The socket is formed in this manner in order that it may fit over the stub which is made of a corresponding shape. I

It will be understood that the socket member 8 is cast from metal and is made in one piece. As shown in Figure 3, the corners of the socket 1'7 are rounded and recessed as at 18. This is done for several reasons. In the first place, by rounding and recessing the corners in such a manner, breaking of the casting will be prevented at the various corners, due to the fact that there will be no shrinkage defect. Furthermore, by having the corners formed in such a manner, the. socket will fit over the stub easily and there will be no interference between the cor-' ners of the stub and the corners of the socket.

The lower end of the socket 17 is reenforced by means of a lip 19 which extends entirely around the outer walls of this socket at its lower end. The lower edge of the lip 19 is chamfered as at 20. Thus, it will be'seen that, even though the lower end of the socket member is subjected to continual battering, the low-- er end of the socket itself, which is formed therein, will be fully protected. Furthermore, the lower end of the socket member may wear to a considerable degree without affecting the lower end of the socket itself. It will also be understood that the lip 19 will prevent the walls of the socket from spreading apart.

InFigure 6, I have shown a modified form of my invention. In this form of my invention, the handle 7 is inserted into the socket member 21 through an opening formed in the upper end thereof. The handle '7 seats in a socket formed in the upper portion of the socket member 21. It is held therein by means of a rivet 22, which passes through an opening in the handle and which also passes through slots 23 formed in the walls of the socket member 21.

The lower end of the handle portion 7 is A socket similar to the socket 17 is formed in the lower end of the socket member 21 and is adapted to fit over the stub. The purpose of providing the slots 23 is to ensure proper seating of the member 21 on the stub. If the lower end of the handle 7 contacts with the upper end of the stub, before the member 21 is properly seated on the stub, the handle member will be moved upwardly because of the slotted connection and. will ensure proper seating of the member 21 on the stub. This is very advantageous. If the slots were not provided, it would be necessary to accurately position the hole in the member 21, through which the rivets 22 pass. Furthermore, if the slots were not provided, the socket would not properly fit the stub after the socket had become slightly worn.

'In Figure 7, I have shown another modified form of my invention. This form is identical with the form shown in Figures 2 to 5, inclusive, with the exception that means is provided for securing the handle 7 to one edge of the socket member. This means comprises. flanges 24 which project outwardly from one edge of the socket member and. which form a space therebetween for the reception of the lower portion of the handle 7. These flanges are provided withopenings 25 through which rivets may be passed in order to secure this socket member to the handle.

.From the description above, it will be understood that I have provided a shaker of the type indicated having many desirable features. .By providing a shaker ofthis type, when the socket member wears out, it may be readily removed and replaced by another socket member. Thus, it will not be necessary to replace the entire shaker, but merely to replace the socket member.

It will also be understood that the shaker which I have provided will be very resistant to wear and will be extremely strong Furthermore, it is constructed in such a manner that it will always fit the stub of the grates, even though it is worn to a considerable degree.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1.'A shaker for locomotive grates or the like,

comprising a handle, a cast socket member, a socket formed in the upper end of said member adapted to receive the lower end of said handle and means for securing said handle in said socket in such a manner as to permit relative longitudinal movement between said handleand said socket member.

. 2. A shaker for locomotive grates or the like, comprising a handle, a cast socket member, a socket formed in the upper end of said member adapted to receive the lower end of said handle, means for securing said handle in said socket in such a manner as to permit relative longitudinal movement between said handle and said socket member, said means comprising a rivet which passes through an opening in said handle and through slots formed in the walls of said socket member.

3. Means for connecting the handle of a shaker to the stub of a grate comprising an integral member having a socket adapted to receive said stub and having a further socket adapted 'to receive an end of said handle, said first named socket'having a fiared lower end terminating in a reinforcing bead and means for fastening the end of said-handle in said second named'socket. 4. Means for connecting the handle of a said first named socket being disposed at one side of said second named socket so that the two sockets are out of alignment with each other in order that there will be no interference between the end of said stub and the end of said handle, and means for securing said handle in said second named socket.

' RAYMOND V. BLOCKER. 

